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08/22/2008
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The Gathering was a weekend that showcased the ever-evolving union between
freeride mountain biking and BMX.
 Right
- Geoff Gulevich kickin' it.
Conceptualized by the Seattle-based crews of Gohuckyourself.com
and Center Cycle, The Gathering welcomed old-school freeriders, new-school
huckers, and a handful of BMXers on mountain bikes for a first or second time...a
couple of whom ended up on the podium.
Gohuckyourself.com managed to snag the industry's top pros including Darren
Berrecloth, Chris Donahue, Cam McCaul, Gareth Dyer, Aaron Peters, John Cowan,
Ryder Kasprick and many others for the two-day event.
MCs Jay Hoots and Darren Butler kept the crowd entertained and educated in
what turned out to be a very long weekend (it ended at 2:30 AM on
Sunday...maybe a few hours later than planned?).
Mountain-bike industry heavyweights Shaums March, Chris Glew, Jesse Roberts,
Jeff Snowden, as well as BMX pro, Paul Kintner, were responsible for deciding
which of many rippers most deserved cash & medals.
Paul B tailwhip
A couple of the titles up for grabs this weekend included the Sickest Trick award
and a Gohuckyourself.com Sponsorship for the top amateur.
Day One
Below - Darren Berrecloth with a one-foot table
 Wide
Open Sports Arena (usually home to MX events) was the venue for Day One. The
course started with a drop down a ramp to three huge jumps (the third with two
hip options to the left and right), followed by a graffiti wallride.
Logistics nightmares plagued two riders before they even arrived at the
Seattle city limits. V-Dub was already in transit when he got a call from
his mechanic...in SLC...with the bad news that his front wheel had
apparently declined to join the caravan west. And Paul B showed up
late and without a bike after some airline drama.
Despite this, Paul B and V-Dub hucked their respective ways to places one
and three with Paul B's 360s and tailwhips (on a bike borrowed from John
Cowan) and V-Dub's truckdriver and 360s.
John Jesme captured second when he
landed a 360 over the first jump (that many struggled to clear) and a
classic backflip over the third.
Jamie Goldman - one-foot X-up back flip
Santa Cruz ripper, Jamie Goldman walked off with the Sickest Trick award
for his one-foot X-up backflip...after facing fierce competition for the honour
from Kurt Voreis and his triple bar-spin.
nsmb team rider Ryan Newman reining in his Superman Seat Grab
Day Two
Right - Aaron Chase making it look easy
 Day Two really showcased the industry's ever-evolving coalition with BMX
when the comp headed over to Renton's Bike Barn. Many of Day One's
stars continued to dominate with tire taps, backflips and 360s. The course included a box with a steep roll-in, as well as, some halfpipes and spines.
The only downside of the event came when Shane, a local BMXer, ended up with
a concussion after slamming down onto his head in one of the Bike Barn's halfpipes.
Thankfully, he walked away only slightly dazed.
Some of the best moves of the comp included Eric Porter's flare out of the
quarterpipe and Jordie Lunn's transfer across a 10-foot gap from the mini
halfpipe to the bigger halfpipe.
Aaron Chase grabbed yet another street comp victory
with tire taps onto the rail atop the halfpipe and sequential 360s over the
trio of spines. Local BMXer Phil Sundaum took second (on his third day on a
mountain bike) with flips, one-handed 360s over the box, and huge hucks
over the spines. Paul B pulled into third place this time with a tailwhip transfer
over the box and another tailwhip off a small drop above the spines.
Chris Van Dine barrel roll
Check out more photos from The Gathering at: Karen's 'Gathering' gallery
Karen Johanson
- check out karenjohanson.com
for more of Karen's work.
Special thanks to: www.gohuckyourself.com,
and www.centercycle.com,
for creating such a fantastic event. As well as to the event sponsors: Deity,
Transition, Woodman, Evil, 661, GRC, Smith, Kona, Haro, FUNN, FSA, and more.
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